


positive reinforcement doesn't work like that

by siojo



Series: Eureka Au [3]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Avoiding respondsibilities, M/M, Pre-Slash, Snakes, are they/aren't they flirting?, eureka au, positive reinforcement
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-02
Updated: 2018-10-02
Packaged: 2019-07-23 19:03:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16164995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/siojo/pseuds/siojo
Summary: The hunt for the cause of the roving blackouts begins, meanwhile Marco learns a little more about things in Eureka.





	positive reinforcement doesn't work like that

“I don’t suppose you’re currently working on anything to do with EMPs,” Marco asks quietly, watching Koala take another complaint about the roving blackouts from a frazzled looking older man with paint streaks in his hair. “Or known of any one who might specialize?”

 

Ace’s eyes narrow and his mouth moves as he thinks, Marco can almost catch names until he starts to go faster, “There’s three projects on EMPs, two of them are for better insulation to protect from blasts and the third is to miniaturize the delivery method, but keep a large affected area.”

 

“Could it be an unauthorized test of the third?”

 

“No. The scientists are presenting their work to the DOD in three hours in Washington. Besides, the current radius of their prototypes is double the size of the town,” Ace shakes his head. “Maybe something to do with testing for the first two. They’re both behind and their results are poor.”

 

“And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that desperate scientists do stupid things,” Marco sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose and regretting the fact that he fell asleep with his glasses on and crushed them. “Alright, so we have them to look into. Could an early prototype of the third have been taken?”

 

Ace frowns, “I wish that I could give you an answer that you would like to hear. However, we haven’t started the audit on the storage areas and with what I’ve read from Doffy’s time as Head,” he shrugs.

 

“Doffy?”

 

“Doffy,” he doesn’t elaborate. “I can have someone go down and check the documentation against the actual items, but we can’t be sure that the documentation wasn’t forged either,” he pushes his hair back from his face. “But it’s worth covering our bases.”

 

“Covering our asses,” Marco offers.

 

“I’ve only been in charge for,” Ace glances at the watch on his wrist and hums. “Six hours. I have a year to complete this whole project. I’m not covering anything, besides,” he smiles brightly and easily. “You’ve been sheriff for a week. I bet you still aren’t allowed to use the cool guns because you haven’t passed the test.”

 

“I’ve been too busy for the test,” Marco yawns. “Sorry, I haven’t gotten a place yet.”

 

Ace makes a face, “Please don’t tell me you’re sleeping in that cell, because I have and if it’s the same bed, it’s bad for your back.”

 

“You have?”

 

“Gramps was the sheriff and I was considered a ‘troublemaker’ and a ‘menace’,” Ace uses finger quotes and Marco has to hide a grin behind one of his hands. “So I may have been locked up in there on occasion. But, not relevant. If you haven’t got a place by the time this case is solved, I’ll see what I can do.”

 

“You don’t have to-”

 

“The sheriff shouldn’t be sleeping at the station. I’m going to get someone I trust at Global to check storage and see what they can find for the project that I mentioned. And make some calls to a few projects that are Section Five. Give me ten minutes and we can start tracking some of these to get a timeline from the reports Koala took?”

 

“Deal.”

 

Koala at least waits until the door is closed, “Are you gonna try and get into his pants, because if so, as Sabo’s girlfriend and one of his best friends, I will have to warn you not to hurt him.”

 

“I’m not going to get into his pants. Ace is nice and he’s certainly more helpful than Doflamingo ever was. I don’t see how being polite and enjoying his company, thus far, means that I want into his pants.”

 

“If you say so,” Koala says handing him a tablet. “I’ve marked all the reported location and connected to the one on my computer so that I can give you live updates as long as you can get data, which with this one, should be just about everywhere.”

 

“Thanks,” Marco says trying not to let her know that he could see there was amounted to a child lock on it, this was why he hated this place sometimes. “I’ll wait for Ace to finish up his call and see if he wants to come check these things out.”

 

“Oh?” she smirks.

 

Marco sighs, he’s tired of this already. He can only imagine what will happen if Ace is insistent about taking all the cases involving Global as directly as this one. Even if it was nice to have someone treat him without the condescending that he’s started to get use.

 

“Zoro’s checking the storage for me,” Ace says stepping back into the station, pausing when he catches sight of them. “Is this a bad time?”

 

“No, it’s fine,” Marco says quickly, ignoring Koala’s snorting laughter. “Zoro?”

 

“Zoro, you met him. At least he said that he’s met you?” Ace shrugs, doing something on his phone. “But he is one of the few people that I trust and I haven’t actually told everyone I’m back yet.”

 

“Sabo must have been pretty happy to see you.”

 

Ace’s face twists and Marco knows that look, “I haven’t seen Sabo yet. Just- Just Luffy. I’m sure that Sabo is busy currently. What with his project and everything,” he shoves his phone back into his pocket. “Are you ready to start, Marco?”

 

“Please,” Marco says holding the tablet closer. “Koala, please keep me up to date on the map that you’ve set up and call if there’s any new information.”

 

“Will do.”

 

Marco waits until they’re outside to hand Ace the tablet, “She’s put child locks on it.”

 

“Why,” Ace asks undoing them, at least Marco thinks that’s what he’s doing. “While some of our technology is advanced, the items on this tablet are to make your job easier, she locked you out of several of them. While you might not understand quantum mechanics, I think you can use a note app.”

 

“Because I’m not a genius,” Marco sighs hitting the button to unlock the jeep. “I’m getting use to it.”

 

“You don’t need to be a genius, just willing to learn,” Ace frowns harder as he climbs into the jeep, arranging the locations by the time that they occured. “And from what I understand of the files that I’ve looked at, you’re willing to learn. It’s not your job to know everything about our work. It’s your job to enforce laws, you’re good at it.”

 

“Thank you?” Marco says in confusion.

 

Ace smiles, easy and bright, “You’re smart and you know what you’re doing. I think that will outweigh the fact you don’t know what is happening all the time. If someone took a little time to explain it to you, shouldn’t that be enough? It’s not like you’ve specialized in any of this.”

 

“You really think so?”

 

“Well sure. I don’t get why people think just because they know so much they’re better. I know metric tonne of things, but I still don’t know how to work a microwave.”

 

Marce stops, turning to stare at Ace in surprise, “You can’t work a microwave?”

 

“I try to do what the instructions say but it always sets itself on fire,” Ace agrees. “I think the first reports come from Hancock, she’s the lady with all the snakes.”

 

“I remember her, she had many snakes.”

 

Ace hums, “she’s a herpetologist with a secondary doctorate in biomolecular chemistry, most of her work is highly theoretical, or with things that just straddle ethics, I suppose. Depending on how you feel about animal experimentation. I think her most recent work is something to do with pheromones.”

 

“Ethics?”

 

“She wants to increase durability in reptiles, that leads to some less than ethical tests,” Ace answers, frowning. “In fact a few of the others are on the same lists as Hancock for those types of tests.”

 

“Are those illegal?”

 

“No, at least not what she’s trying. But like I said, she’s focused on some kind of phermonal thing. I haven’t looked too much at the details yet.”

 

Marco hums, pulling out the station, “You haven’t had much time, even less so now that you’ve decided to join me.”

 

“I don’t actually want to be the head of Global,” Ace says sighing, looking out the window. “I’m more interested in my own work, but I know who they would have sent if they didn’t send me and I miss Eureka. They were horrible to me, that’s true, but this is still my home.”

 

“You’ll do well,” Marco says softly. “You’re smart.”

 

“Everyone in this town is smart, including you.”

 

“You keep saying that,” Marco says slowly.

 

“You’re smart and people here, if they don’t know that you have a doctorate because that’s the only thing they respect, they’ll treat you like you’re stupid. Not all of them, but enough and you aren’t. You’re smart.”

 

Marco laughs, “Is this positive reinforcement?”

 

“Is it working?” Ace asks sheepishly. “I don’t know any other way to make sure you remember it without saying it. Gramps was great, but not the best at this.”

 

“It’s nice. But you can save it for later, or until someone insults me. I’m sure you’ll need it then.”

 

“It’s so elitist and I think it’s stupid, but I can’t change how their minds work. This is Hancock’s place.”

 

Marco stares at the house, encapsulated inside a greenhouse, “What?”

 

“Her snakes,” Ace says climbing out the jeep. “We’ll have to see if she’s up and running and how much of her security footage survived the EMP.”

 

“Wouldn’t all of it?”

 

Ace shrugs, “Depending how it’s stored? And what was used to knock her off the grid. Come on, she’ll be happier when she sees things are being done.”

 

“Right,” Marco mutters following him out the jeep and waiting at the front of the green house. “Dr. Hancock Boa?”

 

“Sheriff, I see you’ve finally arrived. Who are you?”

 

“Director of Global, Dr. Ace Portgas,” Ace answers easily, smile forced and not quite pleasant. “I’m assisting in today’s investigation. I hope that you can spare a few minutes for us? We have some more questions and were hoping to know if your security system survived?”

 

“Please come in,” Hancock says finally, after a too long moment. “Do stay on the path, my snakes don’t like to be disturbed.”

 

“Why start with director,” Marco mutters falling into step behind her. “Why not something else.”

 

Ace smirks, “Because power over them is most important to keep them from doing something foolish.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm really not sure if they're flirting or not, even after all of this.
> 
> Koala isn't trying to be mean, persay, but it's something I've seen with people who are very, very smart? Not all of them or all the time, but they can treat people they don't consider as smart as them the best. (also this is something that carries over from the show, because it happens all the time)


End file.
